The Daily Editors' Blog

A report last week from the Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General on fraud related to Medicare and chiropractic reimbursement led me to ask the following question aloud: "Wait, Medicare covers chiropractic stuff?"

In healthcare, the idea of anyone having idle time at work would likely be met with a laugh. Our collective wisdom indicates that American workers are terribly busy, whether they are working in a nursing home, a school or in a corporate role.

Antibiotic stewardship is a change you need to embrace. You can't just say I prefer it the old way, give everyone an antibiotic who asks for one and that will be that. But I get it. You are willing to change, but sometimes the residents and their families aren't.

Guest blogs

The issue of physician aid in dying is controversial at best and implicates the intersection of law, medicine and ethics. While the law allows for physician aid in dying in a handful of states, not all professional organizations have embraced or supported this growing movement.

Over just the past few years, the nation's three largest pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) - CVS Caremark, Express Scripts and Optum Rx - have come to control more than 80% of prescriptions dispensed in America. For seniors living in the nation's long term care (LTC) facilities, and served by LTC pharmacies, this percentage jumps to more than 90%- a true oligopoly.

Amy Gotwals, the Chief of Public Policy and External Affairs at the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging, kicked off the 28th Annual Aging Conference in New York City last week, held at the New York Academy of Medicine and filled with attendees providing community-based care for elders. Her rousing keynote outlined the vast care demands of the growing wave of elders and the importance of building healthcare partnerships.